Fallout 4: A Complete Overhaul
by Inkytan
Summary: Because of my many issues with Fallout 4's plot, I decided to take it upon myself to change the entirety of Fallout 4, basically overhauling aspects of the story I don't like. Some characters will be changed/replaced, the plot changed, pacing changed, and other edits and alternate choices to things I've wanted to see. If you also had issues with FO4's plot, maybe you'll like this.
1. Chapter 1

**Prologue.**

_War._

_War never changes._

_In the year 1945, my great-great grandfather, serving in the army, wondered when he'd get to go home to his wife and the son he'd never seen. He got his wish when the US ended World War II by dropping atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki._

_The World awaited Armageddon; instead, something miraculous happened. We began to use atomic energy, not as a weapon, but as a nearly limitless source of power._

_People enjoyed luxuries thought the realm of science fiction. Domestic robots, fusion-powered cars, portable computers. But then, in the 21st century, people awoke from the American dream._

_Years of consumption lead to shortages of every major resource. The entire world unraveled. Peace became a distant memory. It is now the year 2077. We stand on the brink of total war, and I am afraid. For myself, for my wife, for my infant son – because if my time in the army taught me one thing: It's that war..._

_War never changes._

**Chapter 1 – Free Insurance, good sir.**

Shuddering breaths between short gasps and mumbles, his hands gripped the sheets tightly, let go and clutched them again. His body shook and twisted on the bed's surface, as those memories from not so long ago continuously invaded his dreams at night. A pool of cold sweat formed underneath his body, as he continued to toss and turn. There was no escape from the memories that haunted his dreams. No escape from the countless faces of the friends he'd lost, and the lives he'd taken. Some soldiers had it easy. They shot off into the distance of incoming fire, probably killed some men and never even knew it, or were lucky enough to not have killed at all. But men like him, the ones who'd been up close and personal, the ones who'd watched the life escape the eyes of an enemy soldier, knowing full-well it was their doing... Those were the men who'd had it worse than anyone else. No amount of booze, therapy or holy forgiveness could erase the faces of the men you'd killed. With your gun, with your knife, with your bare hands. Nothing would ever take away both the satisfaction, and extreme guilt you'd have to deal with for killing the man who was simply following the same orders as you.

A hand was placed atop the shaking man's chest, which instantly woke him. For a moment there, he was back in the war. Enemy fire raining down beside him, explosions causing men to be eviscerated on the spot. And suddenly... The dark ceiling of his bedroom. The comforting touch of his wife, who he'd been lucky enough to return to after the ordeal. His head turned to face her, his eyes exhausted and dark, looking into that of his wife's, who in contrast, had eyes full of concern, love and worry, almost glowing brightly to him in the darkness of the bedroom.

No words were exchanged. Quickly, the man threw the covers off of himself and climbed out of bed, walking out of their bedroom and into the dark hallway. Taking a deep breath, he passed through the hall and into the kitchen, where a screen door awaited him. Walking through, he found himself just underneath the car port. Pulling up a foldable chair, he sat down and enjoyed the fall's nighttime breeze hitting against his skin. There were many thoughts running through his mind... The most prominent one was regret. Regret he couldn't be a more stable, normal man for his wife. And what of his child? Would he be able to be a normal father for him? Would he, ten years from now, still have episodes and freak-outs in the night or day, in front of his own son?

"Nate..." The voice of his wife sounded from the cracked open screen door. She stood there, dressed only in her sleeping garments as she held the door open. Slowly, she opened it the rest of the way, and joined him below the carport's roof, 'It's chilly out here." She commented, then awaited a response from him. She wouldn't receive one... Not for another half a minute before Nate finally replied to her.

"Yeah," He said, simply. Upon noticing the disappointed look on his lover's face, he quickly added more, "But I like it. It was... Getting hot in there," He cleared his throat, "I'm sorry, honey. If I scared you or... if I seem distant. It's just not a good night for me."

"You haven't had a single good night in the past week. To think, after all this time that you've been back... That you'd have recovered a bit more. Or at least, made some progress with the therapist, or – or," His wife was clearly struggling to comprehend his situation. Many did, during these times. PTSD wasn't what it used to be treated as, but the efforts to treat it and help its victims were still challenges faced today, even in a tech advanced America.

"Nora, Nora..." Nate stood up from his seat, his arms going around the slender body of his wife, taking her against himself, "Don't worry about me." His voice was soft, and gentle as he spoke to her, "Listen to me... Listen," He held her face in his hands, looking deeply into her eyes with his. They were no longer dark, but carried that same gentle look she had, "I'm going to be okay. I know what you're concerned about, but that's not going to be me. I have you, and Shaun. You guys are my anchor... Nothing is going to be taking me away from either of you, I promise." He assured her, as he had before, but hoped this would be the last time he had to do it. It made him feel awful to see his wife wracked with concern, terrified he'd be yet another veteran plagued with nightmares that fell down booze, drugs and eventually death. But Nate wasn't lying. The one thing that got him through hell in Anchorage was his wife and infant son. Through every struggle, through every fire fight, they were what kept him going. They were what would keep him going, for the rest of his life. He needed her to understand that. And perhaps, as Shaun would grow older, she would realize it. But for now, he had to do his best to convince her in the present.

"I believe you..." Nora responded, her voice barely a soft whisper as she leaned forward, placing a kiss upon his lips. Nate returned the kiss, and continued to hold his wife in the chill, autumn night.

She was the reason.

In the morning, Nate had been the first to wake up. The baby was already being attended to by their robot servant, Fleur, a Miss Nanny robot constructed and distributed by General Atomics to take care of household chores, as well as handle parental responsibilities. At first, the Nate and Nora were reluctant to allow Fleur to handle their fragile infant, but she had quickly proved herself to be more than capable of taking care of the child. Even so, both parents heavily insisted on helping or taking over for Fleur. Plus, as Fleur had told them before, babies still needed human affection. Naturally, as loving parents to their son, they agreed.

"Morning, Fleur. How's the weather looking today?" Nate asked as he stepped into the kitchen, seeing the morning paper sitting atop the kitchen counter already.

"Good morning, Monsieur! I hope you slept well! The weather forecast today is sunny with the high being sixty-seven degrees Fahrenheit, and the low being forty-five degrees Fahrenheit!" The nanny bot spoke in her usual chirpy, French accent, "Shall I prepare you a coffee, Monsieur?"

"Yeah, sure. Hand the baby over to me, I'll hold him while you take care of that." Nate walked over to her, taking the baby away from her mechanical arms as she quickly began working to prepare a coffee for him.

"One moment, Monsieur!" Fleur opened cabinets and fished for the proper ingredients to brew the coffee for the early morning.

Nate looked down at young Shaun in his arms, smiling down at his baby, who looked up at him with those wide, innocent eyes of a baby. His arms moved about, a tiny hand scratching at Nate's arm, curious brown eyes staring intently at his father, "Hey, buddy... How you doin', huh?" He chuckled, swaying side to side as he looked down at his child.

Shaun slowly smiled as his father moved about, making small noises as the pair moved throughout the living room. All of Nate's stresses and worries escaped him whenever he looked down at his son. That sweet smile, and innocent face only warmed his heart and calmed him. It was a great way to start his day...

"Your coffee is ready, Monsieur!" Fleur chirped up, holding the coffee in her robotic arms as she turned to look at Nate and the baby. She paused for a moment, her robotic eye whirring and focusing on the father and son. She took a moment to watch before speaking, "Young Shaun appears elated to be held by his daddy!" She said, "You and the Mademoiselle are so good with him!"

"Appreciate it, Fleur, thank you." Nate walked back over to Fleur, "Uh - Well, I've got my hands full, can you set it down for me?"

"I have an idea, Monsieur! Why don't I just bring the coffee to your lips as you hold the baby?" Fleur asked, slowly raising the coffee cup to Nate's level.

"I suppose... Uh," Nate leaned over, his lips touching the rim of the coffee mug. Slowly, she tilted it, but upon feeling the absolute burning sensation of the coffee on his lips, Nate reacted by quickly pulling away, "Wow, that is hot! Damn!" His lip was still burning from the hot coffee.

"Apologies, Monsieur! Perhaps it is best to set the coffee down and allow it to cool off whilst you hold Shaun!" Fleur moved the coffee cup away, setting it down on the countertop, "Apologies once more, Monsieur! Please forgive me!" The nanny bot begged.

"It's all good, nothing to stress over. Just set the cup down, I'll watch Shaun for a little while longer while the cup cools." He told her, giving her a reassuring smile. Whenever she did something wrong, she instantly apologized and begged to be forgiven. Was she programmed that way or was it this robot's personality? Perhaps Nate may never find out.

Once a few minutes had passed, Nate had given the baby over to Fleur to be fed by her. With his hands free now, he sat at the kitchen counter, pulling over the coffee cup and paper. One hand had the cup while the other opened the paper, reading the headlines... Nothing good, it seemed. There was never anything good in the paper these days. Not even little small footnotes or feel-good stories to cheer everyone's stressed mood. Every country in the world was still carefully looking at the other, all ready to attack or retaliate at a moment's notice. It led to a lot of business for at-home shelter businesses to build bomb shelters in people's backyards. Nora had even mentioned to him of a Vault-Tec salesman that had been repeatedly over searching for him to sign him up for a spot in Vault 111. Though, he'd never been around to see him. While the chance for a nuclear war to break out was high, he didn't think they had the funds to get their own spots in a Vault. A veteran out-of-work and a housewife with a law degree she hadn't used in a while. It would be time, soon, for each of them to start working as hard as they could. Perhaps, while Fleur stayed, Nate could find some work. Perhaps in the police force or as a mechanic. Nora, on the other hand, would start putting that degree to work. All for a better life for their son.

The paper was too negative these days to be viewed anymore. Nate rolled it up and tossed it in the bin before his wife could wake and read it. She had enough concerns herself to have to be reading about the world possibly about to destroy itself, or bad news from the troops away from home. The doorbell had rung suddenly, causing him to jerk his head back to look at the front door. Standing from his chair, Nate made his way over and looked out the peephole to see a man dressed in a yellow trench coat and fedora. Just on the street, he could see a blue Vault-Tec vehicle. It appeared the salesman finally managed to catch him.

Nate opened up, looking at the Vault-Tec salesman standing on his welcome mat.

"Good morning, sir! My name is James Williams, I'm a salesman with Vault-Tec industries. I've got a heck of a deal for you, sir, if I could just get a moment of your time on this fine, autumn morning." The salesman flashed him the usual smile that sales people gave. His attitude was overly cheerful, but how else would one make a sale?

"Been hearing a lot about you guys lately. Unfortunately, I don't think we can afford anything you guys might be willing to offer." Nate said, leaning on the doorway, "I'm sorry, but you're wasting your time."

"Not so fast, my good sir. Like I said, Vault-Tec is offering you a special deal for you... And your family. Vault-Tec has recognized your service to our great country. Today, I'm offering you a completely free place in the local vault, Vault 111. For you, your wife and infant. Any pets or domestic robots will have to stay behind, I'm afraid. But don't tell me you'll pass this opportunity up? It's not drilling any hole in your wallet! There's no catch, no timeshare presentation, no con! You've done a great service to our country and Vault-Tec wishes to repay you. Please, Mister, get yourself some free insurance for your family, in the event of total annihilation."

The salesman certainly made a good point. A spot in a vault in the event of nuclear war, totally free for him and his family. Why pass an opportunity like that up? If anything did happen, it would be a shame about Fleur. But he was sure she'd understand, "Well... You're right. Free insurance. Yeah, yeah, I'll take it. Do I sign somewhere?" He asked, standing upright now and ready to grab a pen.

"First..." The salesman reached into his trench coat pocket, pulling a clipboard with a paper out. Next, a pen, "Could I get your full name, your wife's full name and the full name of your child?" He asked.

"Sure. Nate Cole Davis, Nora Marie Davis, Shaun Jerry Davis. Is that all or is there some kind of paper I need to fill out?" Nate asked, shrugging his arms. He hoped there wasn't a ton of paperwork involved with this.

"No need, sir! Your full names will be recorded into the system, ensuring the placement of you and your family safely inside Vault 111. If the bombs come to fall, seek out the Vault immediately. There'll be a guarded entrance, allowing those whose names are listed with proper identification to be escorted safely inside. Thank you for your time, it was a great pleasure to meet you. Thank you, once more, for your service, Mister Davis." The salesman stuck his hand out.

Nate gave it a firm shake, "Thank you, Mister Williams."

"See you in Vault 111!" The salesman turned away from the door, heading back to his vehicle.

Nate shut the door, "Hopefully not..." This was insurance he hoped he'd never need... If lucky, in the coming months, they'd forget all about this. And life would go on, he'd find work, Shaun would start school, and the years would come and go until Shaun was a grown man. That's what he hoped for. A normal life, with a normal family.

"Hey, was that the salesman?" Nora was standing in the kitchen, she must've only recently walked in, "Did you buy us a spot in a vault?"

Nate turned to look at her, walking toward her, "Yeah, it was a free offer, so. If it doesn't set our wallet back, what's the trouble?" He asked her, "We've got insurance now. Free insurance, as he put it. Figured it was worth the very tiny amount of paperwork I didn't really even have to do. Hopefully we won't need this insurance, but either way, make sure that you know where your ID is. We're gonna have our names in the system, but without proper ID, they won't let us in."

"That's fine, I keep mine with me. I'll bring along Shaun's birth certificate as ID. That should be enough... Right?" She asked, quite obviously concerned.

"It's going to be whether they like it or not. I'm bringing my baby in there, regardless of whether they accept a certificate or not. What do they want? His own little plastic state ID card? He's fucking one." Nate shrugged.

"Language, Monsieur! You will give young Shaun a potty mouth!" Fleur called from Shaun's bedroom.

"Sorry, Fleur!" Nate called back out to her, "Look, we're fine. We're going to be fine. No matter what happens, all right? You have been... Way too stressed out lately. So, I had an idea..." He walked up to her, gripping her waist, "You, me, the baby. A picnic today at the park. Weather's going to be bright and sunny all day, so what do you say, hmm?" He kissed her lips, waiting for her answer.

Nora giggled, "All right, all right... You're right, I've been really stressed. Everyone has been and I know I haven't been making things easy for you, the way I should be. I think we could both really use this, then. Fleur can stay here and take care of the house for us while we go?"

"Sounds like a plan. Let's go get showered and dressed." Nate let go of her, heading back to the bedroom but he was stopped by Nora's question.

"Together...?"

Looking back, he could see her smirking, "Well... If that's the way you want it." Nate returned the smirk, his wife soon joining his side as they headed into the bathroom.

Later that day, just as the weather forecast had predicted, it was bright, sunny and with a cool temperature outside to keep things relaxing and comfortable. The family had headed to a park not too far away from Sanctuary. Other families were out with their kids as well. They certainly weren't the only family with the idea to take advantage of the gorgeous day. Sitting atop a hill with a blanket and food they'd bought at a store on the way, the pair played with their son as they sat on the hill, laughing and carrying light conversation. It was moments like these that gave Nate the motivation he looked for in life. Happy times, and more to come. One day, he'd be at this park, playing catch with his boy.

"Hey, so, you still giving that speech at the Veteran's Hall?" Nora asked, holding Shaun as he started taking steps around the blanket. He'd been practicing for a while, and soon would be completely ready to walk on his own.

"Yeah, of course. I owe a lot to them. I know it's a little tough to believe, but I'd be in worse shape without those group counseling sessions and meetups we have together. I only know a couple of them from the war itself, but those guys are probably some of the best men the United States Army had the pleasure of having. Good men, each and every one of them." Nate said, "I wish … Well, I wish my friends could've been here to meet them." He went silent after that.

Nora looked over at him, sitting Shaun down, "So... Why don't you tell Shaun a little more about the men who helped you get home?" She smiled, "So he can remember them too."

Nate looked down at his son, who was looking right back up at him. Babbling and attempting to form words as he slowly stood up, taking his steps toward his father, whose hands now resided at Shaun's sides, helping him keep balance.

"Well... Let's start with names. Andrew Jones, Fred Miller, Shane Meadows, Albert Hastings, Grayson Earl, Ashton Jones, John Brown. Those are the names of the men who I'll never forget. Those are the names of the men who are the reason I'm right here with you, bud... And someday, when you're older, I'll tell you about every single one of them. They deserve that, and you deserve to know too." He smiled, holding his baby up to himself and embracing it/

"He'll enjoy hearing those stories. I know he will." Nora said, putting her hand on Nate's back, "I'm thankful for them too. I'm just glad – Well, I'm just glad you made it back." She told him.

Towards the end of the week, just a few days away from Halloween, Nate had been reciting and perfecting his speech for the Veteran's Hall in front of the mirror for the entirety of the morning. While not exactly nervous, he wasn't even sure if he was worthy enough to be the one to give a speech. There were better, more heroic men out there who deserved to be heard. At the end of his speech, he planned to recite the names of the men he'd lost in the war, and explain why they deserved to be remembered too. How their achievements and actions mean more to him, and should mean more to everyone else than Nate's 'act of heroism.' Sighing, he finished washing up, combing his hair and dressing in casual dress for the day. The speech wasn't until the night, so for now, it was just relaxing with his family until it was time to leave.

The baby's wails could be heard from his bedroom, "I'll get him, Fleur!" Nate called out before the Nanny Bot could make her way over to him. Stepping out of the bathroom, he walked into the child's bedroom to see him in his crib, "Hey, pal, hey..." Stepping over and leaning over the crib, Shaun immediately calmed upon seeing his father's face, "That's right, bud, I'm right here... Oh, I got this working again for ya, pal..." He spun the mobile that rested at the top of the baby's crib, which played a soothing melody for him, "Yeah, you're all right, huh, pal?" He chuckled, his hands going down to gently poke and tickle Shaun.

"You're a wonderful father, you know that, right?" Nora said, standing in the doorway. As Nate looked at her, she walked into the bedroom, standing on the opposite side of the crib that Nate was standing at, "He's lucky to have a father as loving and caring as you."

"And I'm lucky to have the most beautiful baby in the world. And you're lucky enough to have the most handsome and... Eloquent husband in the world." Nate smirked.

"Oh, handsome I agree with. Very handsome. Mm, eloquent?" She chuckled, "You learn a new word the other day, or something?" She teased.

"Very funny. Wait until tonight and you'll see me as 'eloquent' as they come. Gonna dressed my best for the event, best you'll have seen me in a while, I'll tell you that much." Nate answered her, still using a playful tone.

"Oh, yeah?" Nora laughed, "You aren't the snappiest dresser. You gonna throw the ol' uniform on?" She asked.

Nate shook his head, "You know what, hun? I don't think I wanna wear another army uniform ever again. It's not that I don't have pride... I just, I can't -"

Before Nate could finish, Fleur interrupted from the living room, "Monsieur! Mademoiselle! Please come see!" She wasn't using her usual chirpy tune.

"What's going on, Fleur?... Fleur?" Nate looked out the door, "Get the baby." Nate quickly walked out of the room, walking right into the living room where Fleur was floating in front of the TV. She moved out of the way, the newscaster in the middle of his sentence.

"- Followed by reports of... Flashing lights... Yes, flashing lights and sounds of-" He paused, "Explosions... We're getting confirmed reports of nuclear detonations in New York and-… And... Oh, god..." He couldn't keep going, and shortly after, the TV signal was lost. Nate was frozen for a moment... Did they finally do it? Was this it?

"Nora!" He turned back, seeing her stepping into the living room, "Get the ID's! We gotta get to the Vault, now!"

"Wait, wait! What about our clothes, our stuff, the baby's stuff!?" She asked, panic rising in her voice.

"We don't have time, we gotta get the hell out of here!" Nate ran over to the kitchen counter, looking for his wallet. He found it, opening it up and making sure his ID was inside, "Fleur, Fleur! I'm so sorry, but we gotta get going."

"Monsieur! Mademoiselle! You're going to just leave me?" Fleur asked, a bit of a hurt tone.

"We don't have a choice, Fleur! We can't bring you! I'm sorry! Take care of yourself. But we have to go." Nate turned around, throwing their front door open and quickly exiting, Nora following behind.

"You be safe too, Monsieur! You and your family!" She called out to them, as she hovered helplessly in the middle of their living room, "Will you come back?"

Unfortunately for Fleur, they were too far away now to have heard her question. As Nate ran out with his wife in tow, he was almost shocked to see the amount of disarray just outside. Military vehicles had wasted no time in showing up and making sure everyone was evacuating or making sure to head to the Vault, which was thankfully nearby. Neighbors were panicking, screaming and running. Some seemed to be refusing to leave, Nate overhearing statements about hoaxes or how there's no way a bomb could land here, of all places. Their funeral... But there was still that flicker of hope that maybe they were right, and this was all a terrible mistake. What would life be like for them... And Shaun underground in some vault? Would he live and die there...?

As they ran up the trail leading to vault, he made sure to constantly turn back and look to make sure his wife was following closely behind. There was a crowd of people pushing their way to the top. Nate slowed down, putting an arm around his wife to protect her and Shaun from any impatient, shoving people, who didn't care who was trampled or shoved aside. Arriving to the top of the hill, there was a gate and several soldiers manning it, in charge of the list of people allowed to go inside. Two of them were in power armor, carrying miniguns, which seemed severely excessive to him.

"Only those on the register may enter the vault! The rest of you evacuate or return to your homes!" The military officer shouted at the growing crowd.

"There's gotta be plenty of room in there!" A man screamed, "I got a wife and kids here! You're the fuckin' army, help us out!"

"Let us in!"

"We'll die out here!"

Nate pushed through the throng of people with his wife following, getting to the gate, "Excuse me, sir! I'm Nate Cole Davis, this is my wife Nora Marie Davis and my son, Shaun Jerry Davis! We – We have our identification cards with us right here... My son, he doesn't have one so we brought his birth certificate. Please, please tell me that's enough." Nate' voice was full of panic and worry – The concern for the certificate being a valid form of ID didn't hit him the way it hit Nora till now.

The officer looked through a list, then up at Nate and his family, "Everything checks out. The certificate is fine, follow him and hurry up."

"Thank you, thank you..." Nate moved along with his wife and Shaun, "Come on, honey, come on..." Walking through the gate, they were met with a Vault-Tec official wearing the jumpsuit along with what appeared to be a security vest, helmet and baton at his side.

"Follow me onto the platform!" He yelled back at them, over the sound of a nearby Verti-Bird.

Nate and Nora, carrying Shaun, followed as quickly as they could, eventually stepping onto a round platform at the top of the hill. No doubt this would bring them to the vault deep into the ground. He held Nora in his arms as they waited atop, along with other accepted signers, who probably paid for their places in the vault, "We're gonna be okay... We're here, we're here..." Nate kept reassuring her, and himself, "We made it. We did it... We-"

A loud bang could be heard from afar, the formation of a mushroom cloud in the distance causing everyone on the platform to scream and begin to panic, "Oh, Jesus..." Nate looked on, the cloud was becoming massive. Only then, did the platform finally start to slowly lower them into the ground, the shockwave of the blast just barely missing them as the platform descended, and the entry at the top shut out the outside world.

"Oh my God... All those people up there... What're they going to do? What's going to happen to them?"

"Our homes... Gone..."

"Everything's going to be different from now on..."

Everyone had something different to mumble and say to each other. Nate was quiet, simply holding his wife and hoping this ordeal would be over soon. It wouldn't matter if he had to wear a blue vault suit for the rest of his life, or live underground. So long as life was considered good for Shaun, it didn't matter. If he learned playing ball underground, or reading and writing, it didn't matter so long as he could watch his boy grow up to be a good man. That's what was important...

Soon, the platform had come to a full stop. In front of a barrier that quickly raised itself up to allow the newcomers to step out was the vault overseer and some security guards.

"Welcome! To Vault 111!" The overseer raised his arms up, "Please stay in line, and proceed up the stairs in an orderly fashion. You'll be picking up your newest vault suits, and heading into the pressurizing pods to make sure your entry deeper into the vault goes well. Remember, here at Vault-Tec, we're prepared for the future!"

Everyone was a bit reluctant, and had questions to ask, but for now, the best thing to do seemed to just do what they were told. One by one, people went up the stairs, were scanned be some machines and then stepped to a table to pick up their vault suits.

"Welcome to Vault 111. Here's your vault suit, and aww! Your baby is adorable. We don't have any vault suits for little tykes like him, but once he gets a little older, he'll get his very own vault suit. Please, follow the doctor into the next room." The woman handing out vault suits to the newcomers welcomed each and every person with a warm, welcoming smile. Nate felt glad to have these kind of welcomes... It seemed to put everyone at ease, how friendly the Vault-Tec staff were/

"You three all set then?" The doctor started moving toward the hallway that led to the next room over, "Nothing to be afraid of. Just pods that'll pressurize and stabilize you to be able to comfortably enter deeper into the vault with no risks of problems. It doesn't hurt and it's quick and over before you know it. You can even bring the baby in with you."

"Deeper into the vault?" Nate asked, "Exactly how deep are we going to go?"

"Oh, just another three hundred, five hundred feet. Trust me, once you're pressurized and stabilized for it, it'll feel just like the normal surface. You know, to prepare being staff in a Vault, we've all had to live in a vault already. This is actually my fifth year here. Trust me, you get used to it quick and it's very comfortable." The doctor told him, leading him into the room with several pods lining up each side. It was awfully cold...

Even so, it was great comfort to both Nate and Nora that life would be comfortable and quickly to adjust to down here. The staff were friendly and helped ease their moods... Nate looked over to his wife, "We made it. Thank god for that free insurance, huh?" He chuckled, "Thank god..."

"Glad that salesman finally caught up to you." She said back, smiling at him, "I don't care what life here is like. Just as long as we're all together."

"And we're going to be," Nate told her, "Shaun's going to grow up underground, but let's be grateful he's going to do any kind of growing at all. Underground, it doesn't matter. We made it, our boy's with us. What's there to complain about right now?" Nate shrugged, "Let's just get this over with."

The doctor stopped them at their pods. After they changed into their new vault suits, their clothing was put into a bag and taken away somewhere else. Where? It didn't matter at the moment. As they said, and as advertised, the vault suits were much more comfortable than Nate thought they'd be. It was like putting on a fitting glove. It barely felt like one was wearing it, it was that incredibly light. And the material, smooth on the inside and the outside was just a little rougher. Nate's pod opened up. Entering, he stood with his back to the cushioned part of the pod. Soon, it closed over him, a little window allowing him to see out into the pod room. Just across from him, he could see his wife and son in the pod. She moved her hand, placing it against the glass. In just a few minutes, he'd be right back with him...

"Time for a whole new life..." He said, his hand moving back down as he watched his wife.

"Beginning depressurizing process in five... four... three... two... one..." The pod's voice sounded inside. And soon, a sudden freezing cold took over. Nate felt... Nothing, as he blacked out.

And suddenly... He was awake. Was this normal? Perhaps he reacted negatively to the process... He coughed, feeling absolutely cold as he looked out, his eyes searching for the doctor. But instead, he watched as a woman dressed in some kind of hazmat suit stepped into view, "This is the one, here." She said, tapping Nora's pod. What was this about? Some kind of malfunction?

Then, out of nowhere, a bald man, who was most certainly not wearing a vault suit stepped into view, "Open it." His gruff voice spoke, staring at Nora's pod. Nate could make out a gun belt around his waist... Was he security?

The woman fumbled with the pod's controls, the door opening. Shaun instantly began to cry, as Nora coughed and sputtered, taking deep breaths, "is... Is it over? Can I come out now?" She asked.

"Everything's fine, relax." The man said, putting a hand up.

The woman in the hazmat suit reached out, her hands wrapping around Shaun's body.

Nora refused, "I've got him..." But the woman in the suit continued, trying to pry the baby from her hands.

"Hey!" Nate shouted, his fist pounding against the glass, "Let go of Shaun!" He shouted.

"Let go of the boy, now." The man pulled a gun out, aiming it at Nora, "I'm only asking you once."

"Hey, hey! Stop! Stop! You fucking bastard, stop!" Nate screamed at the top of his lungs, his heart racing, pounding out of his chest as he tried prying the door open, pounding against the glass.

"I'm not giving you Shaun!" Nora screamed, as she struggled against the woman.

BANG.

"NO! NO!" Nate shouted louder than he ever had before, as rage and grief coursed through him all at once, "YOU FUCKING SON OF A BITCH! YOU FUCKING BASTARD! YOU KILLED HER! YOU KILLED MY WIFE!" He tried kicking, pounding the door, but it wouldn't budge.

Nora's lifeless body lay against the pod as the woman finally yanked the baby away from Nora's dead hands.

"God damn it, get him out of here." The man suddenly stopped, looking at Nate, leaning in. He had a nasty scar along his left eye, "At least we have the backup." And with that, he left.

"NO! GET THE FUCK BACK HERE NOW! GET BACK HERE!" Nate struggled harder and harder, but it was in vain. The door simply wouldn't budge. One moment, he could move, and the next, his body started stiffening up as his tears began to freeze against his face, "No...! No... Nora... Nora..." His hand reached out as far as it could until it hit the glass, but then, he blacked out once more.

And then... What seemed to be just moments later, the pod unfroze him once more. He had trouble breathing this time, leaning against the door as he attempted to catch his breath. A hissing sound was followed by the pod door suddenly unlocking, and the opening up. Nate fell right down, onto the cold floor of the cryo pod room. He coughed and sputtered, lying on his back. As soon as his breath was back, he weakly stood up, leaning against Nora's pod as he flipped the switch, getting it open, "Baby, please... Please, please, please..." What was he even hoping for? For her to magically wake up and tell him it was all okay? That she was fine, and it was all just a terrible nightmare? The pod door slowly opened, revealing Nora's very cold and very dead body inside.

Nate had no words... He fell to his knees, his face contorting into a mess of anguish and sadness, tears freely streaming down his face as his voice went strained and hoarse from the lump in his throat, "N-no... No, baby, please... Why? Why?" He said the words, weakly, "Please tell me this isn't real... Please..." His voice, at this point, was nothing more but a whimpering whisper as he fell to his side. Lying against the cold floor, he could barely stand to look at her cold, dead corpse. Instead, he let himself sob, and let his tears fall to the floor beneath him, "Nora..." He'd barely whisper now and again...

It was ten minutes before he found the strength to finally stand, groaning and grunting, his cries not completely over as he roughly slapped himself multiple times, "Wake up, wake up... Wake the fuck up." But he knew it was also in vain. This was no dream, this was all too real. Everything about it, even as insane as the situation was. Frozen, then his wife, murdered and his son stolen, only for him to wake up now. Why...?

Nate looked back at her pod, frozen in fear of having to look at her dead body again... But he had to. Slowly, his legs managed to carry him over to the front of the pod, slowly looking up at her corpse. The tears came right back, but no whimpers or cries escaped him. He looked down seeing her hand and went to hold it. Her fingers were stiff and cold, the ring from their wedding still on her hand. Nate's hands moved to slowly remove it from her hand, and hold it tightly, "I'm gonna get Shaun back... I promise, baby, I-…" His words were caught in his throat as he attempted to speak. He had to turn away to finish, "I'll find whoever did this... I'll fucking kill him. I'll fucking kill him..." He sniffed, wiping away the tears still in his eyes, "I promise..." With one last glance at her pod, he tucked the wedding ring into one of the pockets on the vault suit, and walked away.

As he walked, he saw the other pods full of people in the room as well. And they didn't have a clue... Seeing a terminal nearby, he thought maybe he could get them all out. Based off what he was seeing, the current screen was showing him the statuses of the inhabitants of each pod. His own pod was marked as, 'MALFUNCTION.' The other pods were active, but the names of the people all had one word next to them, 'DECEASED.' They were all dead... Nate turned to look at the remainder of the pods in the room, and everyone inside. It wasn't just Nora... But all the people in the room were dead in their pods. As he stepped back, he heard his boot crunch underneath something. Turning around, he looked down only to see a skeleton wearing a broken vault suit, "What...?"

A human skeleton. It took about a decade for a human corpse to become a skeleton. Had a decade passed without him realizing it?... There wasn't any time to focus on it... He had a mission. Whoever those people were, they weren't Vault-Tec. Could they have broken into the vault? If so... Did that mean enough time had passed that the surface was habitable again? It took just about five or so years for nuclear fallout to clear. But it must've been longer if there were skeletons... Twenty years asleep? Without even realizing it...

Nate continued moving through the freezing vault, his breath shuddering, body shivering. The vault suits may have been comfortable, but they weren't exactly warm. He had to constantly exhale warm air into his hands, and rub them together as he walked through the vault's hallways and lone corridors, coming across the occasional skeletal corpse. It seemed all the other vault residents were dead long ago... No one continued. No one went on. No one left? What happened...?

He passed near a window, showing a power room inside. It was still active, which explained why the lights were on. But suddenly, a massive roach jumped onto the window, causing Nate to suddenly step back, "The fuck!?" Quickly, it moved away before he could continue to look at it, "Giant roaches...?" Had enough time passed to mutate certain insects...? What about animals? On the table in front of him, a single security baton was waiting to be picked up. Roaches weren't usually 'hostile' insects, but just in case... He picked it up, letting the entirety of the baton slip out to its full length. Afterward, he entered the power room just next door. His worries were correct. A massive, dead roach lay on the floor just a few feet away, electrocuted, most likely. Walking around, he found another couple massive roaches skittering about, "Move, get away...!" He tried kicking at them, but they responded with aggression, approaching quickly and jumping up. Swinging, he managed to hit one hard enough to burst it in half. But then he felt a painful bite on his lower abdomen, "Fuck!" He shook the roach off, stomping hard on its head. With a loud squeal, it died. Normal roaches were disgusting enough... Now they were of this immense size?

After climbing a short set of stairs, Nate quickly met with a water fountain. He quickly threw himself next to it, crouching down and testing to see if the plumbing was still working. Pressing the button to dispense water, he was elated to see a stream moving through. He pushed his mouth against the stream, sucking up as much water as his parched throat could drink. When he was done, he gasped and sat back, breathing heavily... it felt good to get a drink of water in... Who knows how much time, exactly? Standing back up, the next door led to what appeared to be an office. The overseer's office, perhaps? There was a skeleton here, it probably belonged to him. There was also a 10mm handgun resting on the counter, along with some ammunition. That would certainly come in handy... Nate's hand moved toward the gun... He hadn't held a firearm since his time in the war.

But killing roaches or other mutated insects wouldn't be the same as killing people. He could do this, guilt-free. Picking up the pistol, he loaded it up and made sure it was ready to fire with one in the chamber before sitting on the chair, looking through the overseer's computer. There were some interesting files to look at... Mostly journal entries. This cleared everything up. Once everyone was put in cryostasis, things were relatively normal. But it seemed their 45 day wait until they'd be allowed to return to the surface was delayed, again, and again. This wasn't a vault equipped to handle life for the next hundreds of years. Food started running out, people started turning on each other. The overseer became paranoid and selfish, and the people angry and desperate. Those who died in cryostasis actually had it easier... Starvation and infighting or freezing to death without being aware of it? He hoped that was the case, anyway...

Among the computer options, there was also a command linked to an evacuation tunnel which would lead from here straight to the entrance. Using the command, a door at the end of the room unlocked and swung open, revealing a long corridor that would lead to yet another door. Nate stood, quickly walking through now and moving along to the entrance. But he stopped once he was met with the sight of five or six of those damned roaches at the end of the hall, which all quickly began to approach.

Gun in hand, he aimed, closing one eye and beginning to fire at each one individually. A bullet for each. He was a precise shot with weapons, but the constant sound of firing weapon caused his hand to start shaking, quite rapidly. He missed his next to shots, and found one of the roaches up close now, jumping up and biting his hand, "Ngh!" He swung his arm onto the wall, crushing the roach against it. Not only was his hand shaking... It had a small bite and a little blood on it now. Perfect... He started taking deep breaths...

He wasn't in the war...

This situation was different...

No human lives were taken...

Only one human life had to meet its just end. The bald, scarred man that killed his wife and kidnapped his son. He'd pay for what he did... He promised Nora. He promised Shaun, and he promised himself... He'd kill him.

Moving along, he was quickly met with the beginning of the vault once more. It felt strange... It felt like he was here just an hour ago... To think more than a few decades must've passed since... it was a scary thought. What was the world like up there? Was society rebuilding itself? Were any places left untouched? Surely, there had to be some places in the United States that weren't affected by the nuclear bombs. Or in any other part of the world. Clearly... He wasn't the only human left. Not if that man and woman just walked on in. Stepping up to the vault door controls, he tried pressing the big red button with 'open' at the top. But it didn't work... There was some kind of slot in the left, but he wasn't sure what to put there. As he continued looking down, he noticed the skeleton of the vault scientist laying there, a PIP Boy 3000 wrapped around his bony wrist. Reaching down, Nate decided he'd find a better use for it than they would now.

Letting it wrap around his wrist and locking it in place, the machine whirred and turned on, displaying his current bodies' status. It seemed he was perfectly okay... But it seemed this thing didn't know when he was hungry or thirsty, because he still felt both quite strongly. There was also a radio section, but there was no signal in range. Maybe above ground, something would catch on? Another noticeable item on his PIP Boy was a white, key-like object that was attached by wire to the PIP Boy itself. It seemed to perfectly fit with the slot size on the controls. The big red button lit up, and Nate pressed it. Just as he thought, the Vault Door began to slowly, and nosily open up. It screeched wide open, a small bridge extending to allow him to the other side, where the elevator platform was currently waiting for him. Moving through, he stepped on it. A moment later, it actually began to slowly move up. So... Back toward the surface. In just a few moments... He might see sunlight, or moonlight. Or feel the wind, or see the trees. Not that they were distant memories... But hope to see everything living and flourishing would be a good sign. If everything was dead... It meant the surface was no longer habitable, even after all this time. Which meant he'd just die from radiation after a while. The platform moved higher and higher... Eventually, the entrance opening up, almost blinding him from the light just outside... He had to shield his eyes, but eventually, he felt it...

The wind.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2 – You've got it all wrong...**

The platform made it to the top; Nate was blinded by the sun's bright rays. His hand immediately moved to shield his sensitive eyes from the extremely sunny day that had been awaiting him at the very top of the platform. As it came to a stop, his eyes took a moment to adjust before his vision cleared and everything came into view... The sky was blue, with white clouds spread across. Surrounding him, the few skeletons of the people near the platform were still around, and the machinery that had been parked was either turned over, or completely rusted. But what really caught his attention... Was his neighborhood. The top of the hill overlooked Sanctuary Hills. His home. Stepping up to the edge of the hill, he looked out to see ruins. Collapsed houses, in shambles. Cars out in the street, turned over, rusted and with the wheels popped off. There were more skeletons, and Halloween decorations spread across the cracked, paved streets. The trees were no longer carrying autumn colors. They were, for the most part, dead. Though some were growing leaves once more, or maybe they were trees that had long since replaced any that were in the nuclear blast just... Twenty years ago, maybe? Somewhere around there? Nate wasn't sure, and he didn't know if he'd ever be sure. Clearly, there were people here on the surface. If that murderer and the woman in the bio-hazard suit had broken in, that must've meant life still existed on the surface. Somewhere... There were people. Could anyone be living in Sanctuary? Perhaps people who'd taken up residence where he used to live? Or maybe not... It seemed... Undisturbed, at least from here. Either way, without a clue where to start on his search, one thing was on his mind.

Going home.

What else was there to do at a moment like this except see what remained of his old home? Of his car? Of his belongings? Looted and stolen? By any possible survivors? He stopped thinking about the possibility of Sanctuary Hills having been ransacked by miraculous survivors of the bombs, or where his wife's killer and son's kidnapper may have been from, if everyone here was dead.

Nate stepped off of the platform now, his boots crunching underneath grass, and skeletal remains of those who had been unfortunate enough to be stuck above the surface. Walking through, it felt like just moments ago that he was running down with his wife and son, trying desperately to get to the vault in time. As he neared the gate, he saw tons of skeletons awaiting him. The crowd of people who'd been pleading to be let into the vault. They'd all been killed in the blast. Some of them were his neighbors... Everyone at the Veteran's Hall. All the friends he'd made, people he'd gotten to know. They were dead too. His entire life was... Over. All that remained was himself, and his son, wherever he was. Nate took a moment to be silent for the people who'd died, just outside of the gate. A tragedy had happened here. A tragedy had happened all over the country, all over the world. Once Nate had dedicated enough time to them, he moved on, walking down the trail that led to the tiny bridge over a stream of water and into the neighborhood itself. It wasn't anything like it was before he left it. But that much was clear. He just needed to see... What remained of his home?

Stepping out into the street, it was quiet... So quiet. No people, no screaming, no crying, no birds chirping, no wind rustling the leaves. It felt weirdly still, calm. Some would say peaceful... But it gave Nate an overwhelming feeling of absolute dread. Like a dark shadow was looming over him as he took more and more steps, following the cracked sidewalks path down the street. Nature had certainly begun to take over, more than likely a short while after everyone was dead. There was overgrowth in the sidewalk, on the street. Some of the houses were torn down, and had vines and other leaves and roots now attached to them. Without people, nature would devour everything left of their mark on the world. How insignificant, they seemed, when nature cared not for the absence of people.

Eventually, he'd come right across his front doorstep. His door had been completely blown off, allowing him a view of the inside of the house. Somehow, the entire building hadn't collapsed. The roof had some holes, and one of the walls was missing a good chunk, with debris scattered across the floor. But for the most part... Everything was intact. All of their belongings, the TV, the fridge, couch, the holotape viewer, they were all destroyed. Beyond repair, but it wasn't like there was any power to get them up and running, anyway. Turning to his left, he walked into the small corridor which lead to the rest of the house. To his left, the bathroom. The floor was cracked, sunlight was pouring in through a hole in the wall. The toilet was broken, with pieces of ceramic scattered. Strangely enough... He had noticed something strange about the house. With all the debris, and cracks, not a single object was thrown onto the ground. Busted picture frames, bottles, even old, burnt books. They were placed upon surfaces, almost in a neat fashion as if someone had come in and cleaned it up. The further he walked into the house; the cleaner things seemed to get. Most of the debris waited in the living room, but in the corridor, and now his bedroom, things seemed strangely neat. His mattress was gone, and the bed frame was broken, but there wasn't any debris scattered or dirt he could spot. The broken dresser was leaning against the wall, with the drawers all shut. Inspecting them, he discovered some of his old clothing, as well as Nora's. Neatly folded and tucked away... It hadn't been disturbed this entire time? Turning around and walking to the opposite side of the room, he opened the closet up. His military fatigues, still there. As well as his old cap, and some medals. Looking down at himself, he figured it was best to get out of the stupid vault suit. Stripping down, he changed into his old uniform. Though he told Nora he wouldn't ever have worn it again... It, for now, just seemed like a better choice. Stepping out of the room, he was met with Shaun's closed door.

Nate's heart skipped a beat for a moment as he stood just outside of it. Taking a deep breath, a shaky hand moved up and pressed itself flat against the wooden door. Slowly... It creaked open. Inside, he was met with a sight he hadn't expected. Lying on the floor, next to Shaun's crib, was the metallic body of Fleur, the Nanny Bot. She was rusted, one of her eyes was broken. How long had she been 'dead'? The neatness made sense now. Even as they were gone, she managed to do her best to keep the house as clean as she could. His wife... Fleur... Those people. Everyone was dead, so far. The only people living, to him, was a killer and a kidnapper. Slowly crouching down... Nate picked up a little book in one of her metallic claws. Shaun's children's book.

'YOU'RE SPECIAL.' The title read.

Slowly setting the book down, he looked at the crib just beside him, "I'm comin', buddy..." He said, quietly. He wasn't sure what it was... But when he was supposed to be feeling mental anguish and absolute misery, given the state of the world, and the remains of his life and home, he was filled with motivation. Looking at Fleur, he quickly picked her body up, bringing her out into the living room. Setting her down, the next thing he did was move to the laundry room, where he had placed the Miss Nanny box, manual and some special tools whenever they had purchased her. Dragging the box out, and grabbing the toolset, he walked back over to the Nanny bot and got down onto the floor. Turning the box over, he dumped out everything that was inside. There were some spare parts, a single eye, a claw, some key components and the manual to fixing up one of the bots in case anything ever went wrong. There was also a number to call for refunds or replacements, but that wouldn't do him any good now.

Quickly, he gave the manual a read, and once he was done, began to get to work. The first thing he did was replace one of her eyes. The extra claw would be kept in case she ever needed it replaced again, which, he hoped no situation ever lead to her having to need that replaced. Once the new eye had been put in place of the old, broken one, he popped her backside open, looking through. There were a couple fried wires, and her circuit board definitely needed to be either fixed or replaced. It didn't seem beyond repair... She wasn't beyond repair. He could bring her back! Speak to her... He'd speak to anyone right about now. It felt strange and lonely, especially with how quiet it was outside. Either way, fixing her was going to take a fair amount of work. But at the moment, he had the necessary parts and tools. Now all he had to do was figure it out...

Hours had passed by. The bright soon was no longer in the center of the sky, but beginning to move down, toward the west now. In another couple of hours, nightfall would come. This worried Nate... As desperate as he was to get Fleur in working order again, he still didn't have food, water or a comfortable place to sleep. His house would have to do for shelter, but he could feel the temperature dropping outside, and his body could use some water. There was a river nearby, but... Would it be irradiated? If the water was contaminated, he'd more than likely get sick from it. And travelling down to Vault 111 to collect water from their sinks seemed like a lot of legwork. He could go a couple of days without food or water. But soon... He'd need to find some basic needs fast, otherwise he'd perish before ever finding his son.

Another couple of hours had passed. With the sun having set, it was too dark to see. Luckily for him, his PIP Boy had a flashlight option that illuminated the room enough for him to still see what he was working on for Fleur... Finally, it was complete. For the time being, however, he found himself exhausted. Exhausted from the day's events, and working on Fleur. He had a lot to think about, a lot to reflect on and a lot to dream. He hoped tonight wouldn't be filled with nightmares... Lying down on the floor, he'd used the crumpled-up vault suit to rest his head, and had grabbed a torn, old blanket to wrap himself in. Softly sighing, he shut his eyes... But it was too quiet. Unbearably quiet...Moving his PIP Boy up to his face, he decided to check the radio tab. Could he possibly pick up any frequencies? Were there even any?

There were exactly two.

'Diamond City Radio.'

'Classical Music Radio.'

While it was interesting to see two radio stations broadcasting... The name of the first one caught his attention the most... "Diamond City...?" He mumbled out loud, selecting it. So... Civilization wasn't completely gone. Diamond City must've been some kind of place set up by the survivors of the war. It had to be, there was never any Diamond City before. He waited for his PIP Boy to begin broadcasting the signal to him... And after a few moments... It started.

A song was playing. Instantly, just after the first few lyrics, Nate recognized the song.

"I don't want to set the world on fire," The song went.

"I just want to start a flame in your heart..."

Well, with the absence of recording studios, no doubt new songs couldn't exactly be written, recorded, distributed and broadcasted nationwide. If civilization wasn't completely gone, surely there were performances still. Singers, dancers, and new music. But it wasn't being recorded. Or maybe, there were day time broadcasts with new music, from this 'new world' to listen to sometime soon. Something to look forward to... As Nate began to fall asleep to the song, his attention was caught by a voice over the radio. This station had a DJ...

"And now, a short, er – Commercial break. Brought to you by Diamond City Radio's sponsors... They help me, um, us, stay on the air. So... Be sure to give them some business. Ahem, Kathy and John's super salon...! Tired of that old, dirty haircut? Let John and Kathy turn your moppy head into something from the upper stands...! So... Be sure to give Kathy and John's Super Salon a visit... For some caps. Especially if you like listening to the radio. Ahem... And now, for -… Orange Colored Sky... A timeless classic, sang by Nat King Cole... You probably know that by now, though..." The DJ was awkward, stilted and weirdly quiet. Nate wasn't quite sure how he managed to land himself this particular job, as his personality was all wrong. Did most people today lack charisma and cheery attitudes? He wouldn't blame them. If the world out there was the same as it was here in Sanctuary, everything was in shambles. Ruins. And whatever was left of society more than likely was nothing but a massive, crummy dumpster. He'd soon find out... But a few things took priority first. Fleur needed to be activated, food needed to be gathered, and a reliable source of water had to be established before he ventured out there. Perhaps in this new society, someone could help him find the man who killed his wife and stole his son. With no leads, and no knowledge of who he might be or where he might come from... He couldn't just aimlessly walk in a random direction, hoping to run across him.

As the song played, Nate turned over onto his side, his left arm stuck out to have his radio propped up against the ground, letting the song play. Once more... He shut his eyes, and let himself drift off to sleep.

That night... There were no dreams. He was asleep one moment, and then he awoke to birds chirping, and sunlight shining on his face through the holes in the wall. At least there weren't any nightmares... Slowly sitting up on the ground, he felt his throat was a bit sore. He was incredibly thirsty... But he wasn't sure where to find water. Looking down at Fleur, he figured he might as well activate her first before going off to find water. Crouching beside her, he grabbed a small tool that he could fit into a little power button in her back panel. Once he pressed it, he retreated the tool and then shut her back panel. Sitting back on the ground, he waited for her to activate... Nothing.

Nothing.

Nothing...

Still nothing...

Nate grabbed the manual, looking through it once more. Where had he gone wrong? Why wasn't this working? Reading through again and again, he couldn't find a skipped step or anything wrong that he'd done. Tossing the manual aside, he swore as he looked down at the metallic body of the Nanny Bot. Perhaps General Atomic's bots weren't created to last more than a couple of decades. Sighing, he stood off the floor and left the house. The river just next to the bridge that led out of Sanctuary Hills wasn't dried out, and still had water. However, it wasn't purified. No doubt it was contaminated, and may still be irradiated. Nate wasn't sure how to purify irradiated water, but for now, would have to simply boil the water, at the very least. It would be somewhat clean... Though, he wouldn't know the level of radiation he'd be in-taking with each drink. Once he arrived at the bridge, he carefully got down to the side of the water. Crouching down, he washed his hands and face. The water was cool, and enjoyable... But to bathe in it or use it for more than drinking was probably a bad idea. Cupping his hands, he gathered what he could and began to drink. Again, and again until his throat was no longer parched... His PIP Boy went off; Raising his arm to look, it seemed it could tell him whenever he ingested irradiated substances. Only know did he notice there was also a Geiger counter on it. That'd be useful.

Now that he'd drank some water, as awful as it was for his health, he walked away from the bridge. The next thing he had to do was find food – He was already hungry now, and would be even hungrier later on in the day. His first instinct was to scavenge the nearby houses for old canned goods he could find stored away in their cabinets and drawers. House after house, he dug through all sorts of containers, and raided the kitchens. He found cram, cans of beans and other items he could cook up over a fire and a pot of boiling, radiated water. No doubt whatever he ate later would leave him sick and bent over... Some spots offered good rewards for his scavenging. Old water bottles, more than likely unaffected by the outside world's radiation. He opened one up, and took a few gulps. The difference in quality between this bottled water and the river water was drastic... It was clean. Gathering up some bottles in an old bag he found in a closet, he also took any other food items he had found and stuffed them inside. Making his way back to his house, he sat on top of his old, broken, rusted car underneath the car port's roof. Bursting one of the fruit cans open – He sniffed the inside, dry heaving from the smell. Canned goods typically didn't last over a single decade, but this smelled and looked like it had been rotting inside the can for hundreds of years. He tossed it aside, instead going for a can of lentils. A proper fire and potted water would have to be used to cook them. At least lentils would definitely be good, even this much time later.

After a couple of hours, Nate had managed to get a proper fire going. Having found an old pot in his kitchen, he filled it was purified water, and began to boil it. The lentils wouldn't take much longer than twenty or so minutes to cook. He'd removed his PIP Boy, leaving it on and letting the Diamond City Radio play over the sound of his cooking. But another noise had disturbed him as he stirred the lentils with an old spoon... Mechanical whirring, and shifting inside of his house where he'd left Fleur. Quickly, he stepped into the living room – Only to see Fleur's body slowly rising up, hovering once more. She turned around, her three eyes looking right at him.

"Monsieur Davis...?" She wondered aloud, as her eyes investigated him, "Impossible... Forgive me, Monsieur. I had you confused with someone who looks... Very, very similar. But he should be long dead by now. And so should I... Did you repair me, Monsieur? I see my manual over there, just on the floor. And my eye – It has been fixed! How ever could I repay you?" She asked, still using that chirpy voice, and her French accent was as thick as ever.

Nate chuckled, putting his hands on the top of his head, "I did it!" He exclaimed, "Fleur, it's me! Nate! Nate Davis!" He walked right up to her, "I'm not some random guy, it's me. Look, I'm even in my old uniform. You folded it for me, while I was gone. Jesus... I'm sorry, it just -… I can't believe I managed to repair you."

"Monsieur..." She hovered back for a moment, clearly surprised that Nate had shown up after so long, "But... How? What happened to you? When you... When you left me?" It was clear that she was still hurt, even after all this time. It seemed incredibly strange to Nate for Fleur to be so... Human, sometimes. She was quite emotional for a domestic house robot.

"My family and I were frozen in that vault up there. They lied to us, told us it was depressurizing pods to make it easier for us to access the deeper sections of the vault." Slowly, Nate shook his head, "Bunch of bullshit. Packed us into fridges and... I know it's been like, some twenty years and I haven't aged. Well, that explains it. I only woke up yesterday. And it feels like a lot has happened since then..." Nate told her, his face softening into a more somber look.

"Monsieur..." Fleur approached slowly, "You... You could not be any more wrong." She said.

Nate looked at her, his face now confused, "What're you talking about? Wrong about what?" He asked her.

"Twenty years since you left?" She slowly shook her body, "No. Monsieur... It has been exactly 210 years since you and your family left for the vault, in the year 2077. The current year, Monsieur, is 2287."

Nate was completely silent as he looked at her. His eyes, slowly looked away. At this point, he was spacing out, as if wondering how on earth such a massive amount of time could've passed... Two hundred years of sitting in that fridge, underground. With his back against the wall, Nate slowly slid down and looked to the ground, "J-...Jesus..." He said, looking up at Fleur, "Two... Two hundred years?" It was a lot to take in. To think, what he thought must've been around twenty years, given the skeletons all around the vault, was actually two entire centuries, "I've been sleeping for two hundred years..."

"Monsieur..." Fleur's calming voice began to speak to him, in a gentler tone, "You've re-activated me. And I am still in your service, even after all this time. Please... Allow me to assist you, as I should. I know it's a lot to take in, but we can do this. Together! We can survive, Monsieur." If Fleur had a mouth, no doubt she'd be smiling, "Monsieur... Where is the Mademoiselle and young Shaun? Perhaps in another house nearby? Still at the vault?"

Nate hadn't even thought to tell her yet. But it needed to be said... Looking up at her, it pained him to even repeat what happened, "Fleur... I... When we were frozen, I woke up twice. The first time, two people showed up and opened up my wife's vault. One of them was this... Grizzled, bald asshole with a scar on his face. The other looked like some kind of scientist, or – or something, I don't know. Well," He cleared his throat, feeling that familiar lump begin to form, "They wanted Shaun. Nora refused to give him up so... They -" He gulped, trying to speak through the pain as tears began to form in the corners of his eyes, "He shot her."

"Monsieur..."

"She died. Instantly, thank god... And-… And then they took Shaun away. After they left, I was re-frozen. And then... I woke up a second time. I don't know how or why. Some kind of error in the machine, but it let me out. Everyone else was dead. The pods had malfunctioned, and left them dead inside. I was... Lucky, for some reason. Now I'm out here. And Shaun's out here. And my wife's killer and my son's kidnapper, they're out here, Fleur. Somewhere, in this godforsaken land, my baby boy is lost, kidnapped by total fucking strangers." Slowly, Nate started to rise. Anguish was replaced by anger, "That fucking maniac is out there with my son!" He shouted at her, "And I don't have a god damn clue where to start looking! I have no fucking clue where he could've gone or what he could've possibly wanted with MY son!"

"Monsieur, please! Calm down... I understand you're upset... But please... Try to relax..." A mechanical claw outstretched and was gently placed onto his arm.

Nate looked over at Fleur, all three eyes on him. Sighing, he nodded, taking deep breaths, "You're right, I'm... I'm sorry. Acting like that isn't going to help me find my son. Fleur, we'll survive. Together. And... Maybe you can help me find my son."

"I'll do anything you ask me to, Monsieur! It's so good to have a friend again! I've spent two hundred years not talking to a single soul... Monsieur... If you don't mind me saying... Your wife," She paused for a moment, as if uncertain that she should continue, "Do you... Want to bury her?"

Nate had considered this shortly after leaving the vault. Would he leave her body, down in that cold vault, full of the dead bodies of other pre-war corpses and skeletons... Or would he go back down there to pick her up, and bring her to the surface. To be buried in the ground, with a proper grave. A place where... When Shaun was older, he could take him to, "Yes." He answered her, simply, "You're coming along. There are a few things I have to get there. Mainly their... Clean water. I need bottles, jugs of it. And we need to haul it back up here. I... Haven't bathed in two hundred years, you know... Heh..." He tried finding some humor in the situation, to make things less tense for the two of them. But it was difficult... Could he even manage...? Carrying the corpse of his dead wife, who'd only been recently killed for him, and burying her?

She deserved it. Nora, the woman who'd supported him through everything. Mother of his infant son. She deserved more than what she'd been given... The least he could do, is give her a proper burial.

Within the hour, Nate and Fleur headed back up the hill to Vault 111's entrance. He had Fleur stand on the platform, while he went to the control console and pressed the button to lower it into the ground. Walking back over to the platform, it took a moment, just like before until it slowly began to descend into the ground. Once more, he was entering into the vault. But this time, with a much more different goal in mind. Once they were at the bottom, and had reached the vault itself, they quickly moved inside. Nate didn't want to spend more time than he already had to getting water supplies, some tools and then eventually getting his wife. In fact, he was taking his sweet time filling up the bottles and empty jugs he'd brought with him from the surface. Even Fleur seemed to note his... 'stalling' of the situation, as if afraid to encounter his wife's body once more. But he had to do it... There was no doubt about it, and now that he was down here, there was no turning back.

Once the jugs and bottles had been filled, and other supplies gathered, they left what they needed to wait on the platform. Nate moved along through the same hall he'd followed the doctor through two hundred years ago. Once more, he walked down the hall where everyone assured him that he and his family would all be okay.

What a load of horse shit...

Stepping into the cold pod room, his wife's was the only pod opened besides his. They were right across from each other. How fitting... He had a perfect view of his wife's murder. And a perfect view of the one who pulled the trigger.

"I promise..." He mumbled once more, as he approached his wife's pod. Nate took a deep breath, looking at her lifeless body. Every noise seemed to completely stifle itself as he looked at her form... Her face...

Why?

Before Fleur could approach, Nate stepped toward Nora's body, his hands going around her and lifting her up from her spot in the pod. Nate held her in his arms, the way he held her after their wedding ceremony. Flashbacks hit him hard – It was a better day, in a better time. But he focused himself on what was now... Holding his wife closely against himself, both he and Fleur were as silent as the dead that surrounded them. Wordlessly, Nate stepped onto the platform, Fleur next to him as it began to ascend once more to the surface. Nora would never see what became of the world. She wouldn't ever see what became of their house, their car, their things. What became of Sanctuary Hills, or the high school they used to attend together. She'd never see what happened to the park they drove to, or the theater where they watched movies. And once he had Shaun back, she'd never see what became of him... But at least, she would be at rest. Buried, close by. So he and Shaun could pay their respects.

Once they'd reached the top of the surface, Fleur helped sling the bags onto Nate's shoulders, and she as well took some of the bottles and jugs in bags they'd collected. Afterwards, they began their descent into Sanctuary Hills, following the trail laid out for them. Upon arriving to the house, the bags were set down, and Nate carried Nora into the backyard. There was a perfect spot for her, in the grass. Fleur found a shovel in another house's garage, and brought it to Nate. Then, he spent the next few hours digging a proper grave for his wife. Once the hole was deep enough, and fit her size, he slowly lowered her inside. And then, buried her.

He'd constructed a cross with some wood and nails he'd found. Using a tool's sharp edge to carve out some writing...

'Nora Marie Davis. Mother. Wife.'

By the time he had finished, night had fallen. Nate didn't exchange very many other words with Fleur. For now... He chose to lay on the ground, quietly, thinking about the past days' events. Activating Fleur, scavenging, gathering supplies, discovering he'd been asleep for two hundred years, burying his wife. It all felt so... Surreal. Like it wasn't really happening, a terrible dream he couldn't wake from. As he lay there, his eyes wandered over to Fleur, who was currently cleaning the debris, as quietly as she could, in the house. He was definitely grateful to have her back... But tomorrow, things would be different.

Sanctuary was no longer home any more. And there was a man out there. A man who was going to pay. And his son, who needed his father.

Tomorrow, at first light, Nate would begin his journey into the wasteland.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3 - Stay. **

Once the early sun had just barely started peeking over the horizon, Nate had woken as soon as he felt daylight hit and warm his face. Fleur, naturally, never slept, so she was already awake. They both took as many things as they could in their bags, and set off on the road to leave Sanctuary Hills. As Nate walked across the broken bridge that led out, he could spot something just around the bend. Hurrying along, Fleur following closely behind, he briskly made his way down the street, to see a sign with gas prices on them and the familiar Red Rocket Station logo, "This place is still here, after all this time? You'd think a gas station would've popped." Nate commented as they approached it. The place was completely deserted, but a disaster. Trash, debris and broken old cars were littering the places. Even the inside, which had some workbenches. Someone had been here before, maybe they were still around, "Fleur, check around, see if you can find any signs of someone living here recently. I'm gonna check the inside."

"As you wish, Monsieur." Fleur immediately began to slowly circle around the building, looking for anything that could tell them someone had been here. Old fires, beds, remains of food or human waste.

Nate walked into the Red Rocket's garage, first, inspecting everything that awaited him. There were a couple of workbenches, which would be great for keeping his gun maintained. Or anything else he might find that needed repairs. The place still seemed to be packed with plentiful tools and adhesives, which made good for modifications. If Fleur ever got damaged again and needed to be repaired, this would be the place to take her. There was also a power armor stand, "Incredible..." He mumbled quietly. Naturally, those things withstood the test of time. If he got his hands on one of those, and brought it here... He'd be unstoppable in the wasteland. In his time in Anchorage, Nate had stepped into power armor a couple of times. Though he was a bigger target, nothing made anyone feel safer than being inside a giant metal suit of armor that could go head to head with Chinese tanks. He wondered if there were any T-51 power armor sets left from the military around the wasteland. Those would be the most useful.

Investigating further, he moved out of the garage and stepped out into a small hall. There was a broken-down food dispensing machine, debris and trash littered the place, and the windows were completely blown out, allowing for the breeze to freely roll in. Nate moved around behind a small counter. There were two rooms, one full of old boxes and more trash, and then another room lacking a door. Poking his head inside, this must've been the owners or managers room. It was deserted. There were definitely signs of life; an old bedroll, and empty bags of food. Whoever had lived here, and moved things such as workbenches and power armor stations, might still be around. Or perhaps not. It would take a little more investigating to figure that out. At the end of the room, there was a desk and terminal. Some old filing cabinets and a box underneath the desk. Kneeling down, his hands wrapped around the box and opened it up. It was full of... Bottle caps? Was the owner a collector?

"I found an old fire pit, Monsieur. But it has not been lit in ages. Whoever used to live here has long since left, I imagine. Oh, lucky you, monsieur! You've found a stash of caps!" Fleur suddenly spoke from the doorway, her voice chirpy and excited for him.

"Why?" Nate turned back to look at her, holding one of the bottle caps up, "The hell good does this do me?"

"Oh, forgive me, monsieur! I had forgotten, you don't know anything about the wastes. Well, bottle caps have replaced paper money as currency." She quickly explained.

"Bottle caps?" Nate asked, "I mean... If it works. Good for us." He closed up the box of caps and shoved it into one of his bags, "One of the things I've still got to do is establish a proper shelter. Somewhere for us to stay permanently, a place we can go to when we're not... Out there," Nate paused, "I think this place would be perfect. Abandoned, workbenches, a room I can make my own. It's gonna take a lot of work, but if we can get this place to be cleaned out and serve as a home, we'll have a proper place to stay. Venturing into the wastes is going to have to wait a bit longer. As much as I want to get out there and find Shaun, I still have no idea where to start looking. Diamond City sounds like a great place to start, but I have no idea where the hell that is."

"Diamond City... I am sure it is the old ballpark in the city, Monsieur. It's why they call it, 'The Great Green Jewel.' But it's a long walk from here. It would be best to establish this shelter as our own first." Fleur exited the room, "I shall begin cleaning up!"

Nate watched her exit, considering his new options, now. Diamond City was the old ballpark in the downtown center of the city. It was miles away, but if he started early in the morning, he could use the daylight to arrive perhaps before the sun completely set. If he wanted to, he could begin heading there. Just as soon as tomorrow, or even the day after. The Red Rocket Station would take probably a few days to get the entire mess cleaned, and even more supplies to be gathered to get bedding in, or maybe even a water pump. Whatever he needed for survival, that much was for sure. Plus, extra food. Animals must've been alive, if humans were. He'd need to hunt, gather and cook meat to eat. What took priority?

Shaun?

His survival?

Nate took a moment to think about it. If he was underfed, had no place to stay, and no water to drink, how could he ever have the strength to find Shaun? Unfortunately for Nate, and Shaun, his trip to Diamond City would have to wait until the Red Rocket Station was completely set up. And so, the cleaning began.

It took hours of the first day. Nate had found a radio that was tuned into Diamond City. He set it up on the counter, and let it play music for all hours of the day as he and Fleur toiled away. Fleur revealed and interesting function she had: the ability to purify water. Naturally, Nate would be taking full advantage of that. So far, he still had a good supply of water left. Drinking water, water to bathe in, clean from the vault. He wouldn't have a need for Fleur's ability to purify water just yet, but she was technically a water source. Perhaps it was too risky to lose her, and she would have to stay behind and watch the place. Nate felt she wouldn't be thrilled with the idea, but while she served him, she was free to make her own decisions. After two hundred years of absence, Nate considered her a 'free' Nanny Bot.

As the sun began to set, and the daylight retreated, to be overtaken by shadow, Nate set up a large bucket to stand in and use the purified water to bathe himself. He was covered in sweat and grime from moving trash and debris for the entirety of the day. As he bathed, Fleur made sure his clothing were clean and neatly folded, awaiting him. Once finished, he re-dressed and made his way back inside the Red Rocket Station. Luckily for him, the person who used to live here left their bedroll behind. Tucking himself into it, he told Fleur goodnight and drifted to sleep. The following few days would be more of the same. Cleaning, and then hunting.

That night, Nate dreamt again. But it wasn't of his time in the war. He had a strange dream, of running. He wasn't exactly sure what he was running from, but he had to run. Sprint, chase, pursue or maybe he was running from something. Once he woke, he hadn't a clue what he might've been running from. It was a strange dream, with absolutely no importance or meaning. So long as he didn't have nightmares, he didn't care what he dreamt of. That morning, he and Fleur once more began cleaning out the debris inside and outside of the shop. Anything that could be broken down into components and scavenged for parts was and had been put away into a container. At some point, once the sun was at its highest point in the sky, indicating noon, Nate decided to grab his pistol and head off hunting. Before he could go, Fleur stopped him.

"Would you like me to come along, Monsieur?" She asked him, waiting by the garage door.

Nate turned to look at her, "I've got this. Stay here and keep cleaning up. I'll try and come back with some food. Maybe get a fire prepped, in case I do. If not, might as well make more lentils. See you in a little while." He told her.

"Wait, monsieur! Be safe out there. There are more than animals, you know... Watch out for people." She warned him, "Raiders are not exactly friendly."

Nate hadn't considered the possibility of running into other hostile people yet. The thought hadn't come to him... Looking down at his pistol, he considered his options in case he ever ran into 'raiders'. As much as he didn't want to kill a human, again, he didn't have much trouble shooting and killing someone who was trying to kill him, though he'd rather avoid it. But anyone who got in the way of him finding his son... They'd have to be taken down. How he went about it, he wasn't sure. But he knew he'd have to cross that bridge once he got there, "Thanks for the warning. But don't worry about me, all right? I can take care of myself. I'll see you later."

Nate left the area, walking down the road for a few minutes before splitting further into the wilderness that awaited him. He walked slowly, and without trying to make much noise in case he spotted an animal. No doubt they were still as jumpy and quick to run as they were before. But if roaches became bigger due to mutations, what could've happened to deer? Did they get smaller? Bigger? Maybe grow extra antlers? Perhaps he'd find out...

A solid hour had passed before Nate had eventually run across an animal. He saw something, in the brush. Crouching low, he readied his pistol. Looking off, trying to get a better look at it. It started moving, stepping out of the brush. Nate moved aside from his cover, peeking out to view the animal. It was all black, resembling a deer, except it had two heads. Well, he was almost right with the extra antlers theory. Looking down at his 10mm, he wondered if it would be enough to down the creature. It was big, but had the necessary amount of meat on it, for sure. Perhaps if he got closer, and fired a good shot at its lungs. Nate attempted to approach quietly, staying low and having his pistol on its safety setting until he was ready to fire. Looking down at the ground, he was cautious not to step on any branches or anything else that might make a loud noise and alert the 'deer' that he was approaching. Soon, the deer was just thirty or so feet away from him, its head and defenses lowered as it ate grass. Nate aimed his pistol at the deer… When a thought occurred to him: This was impractical. A 10mm handgun wouldn't take down a deer. At the most, he'd injure it. Then, it would scurry off and lead him on a larger chase than he was ready to do at the moment. There had to be other, smaller game around the forest.

Wandering around for another couple of hours, the most he found were more skeletons, and broken items laying in the dirt. To his luck, he managed to find some tools, and spare ammunition - at least, very little of it. As he wandered, the sound of a crackling fire and low voices could be heard over a short hill, behind some trees and brush. Nate hadn't seen another human of this time since he woke a couple of days warned him to be careful, telling him there were raiders in the area. As he approached, he heard the conversation. It sounded… Non-violent. Just a couple survivors having regular, day-to-day chit-chat. Nate stepped over the hill, walking through the brush. As he entered the clearing, and was upon their campsite, he found himself facing three gun barrels aiming at him, "Whoa, easy…" Nate put his hands up, "I'm not a raider, I'm not trying to rob you."

"Forgive us for the paranoia, friend. But we've been robbed, attacked and some of us killed with almost every 'kind stranger' we encounter just wantin' to talk." One of the men, older than the rest with a graying beard and hair was the first to speak, "You wanna talk, but that there gun down on the ground. You do that, show us you ain't got any other weapons, we'll talk."

Nate looked at the eyes of the people that sat there. The older man looked at him, with a stern but calm eye. The two other young people travelling with him both had gentler, more frightened looks on their faces. Nate nodded, removing his gun and setting it on the ground slowly, then turned around to show he didn't have any other guns hidden on himself, "We good?" He asked, turning to look at the older man.

He nodded, "Take a seat with us, stranger. James, Holly, lower your weapons."

James and Holly both looked a little reluctant to agree with this order, but they complied. Their weapons were lowered. Holly placed her weapon beside her, but James kept a hand on his. He was eyeing Nate, with caution, not anger. Given what the older man said, they had a right to be afraid of him. No doubt the world had become a cruel, harder place to live than what it was 200 years ago.

"So what's your name, stranger?" The older man asked, continuing to prepare the food he had on the fire.

"Nate. Nate Davis. And you?" Nate asked him.

"Peter Benjamin. Folks call me Ol' Pete. It's nice to meet you. You seem like a decent enough man. More decent than what we've been runnin' across these days. But, you probably know a thing or two about what it's like out here," Pete chuckled, preparing plates, "We all do."

"You're wrong about that, actually. I'm not from here. A few hours walk from here, just back that way, is a place called Sanctuary Hills. Old neighborhood I used to live in. About 200 years ago. There's a vault just on the hill from it, I was frozen there when the bombs fell. Woke up a couple of days ago and everything's changed. I've faced my fair share of hardship, but nothing like this." Nate explained to him. Pete seemed trustworthy enough to reveal this truth about himself.

"Two hundred years frozen in a vault, huh?" James shook his head, "He's bullshitting, Pete. Bet he's a con-man, trying to get your pity or somethin' so you can give him caps or - or food, or whatever the hell he's gonna ask for."

"Well, I'm no con-man and I didn't come to this camp spot with any plans. But now that I'm here, I'd be more than willing to trade. I need food. Got a shelter just next to Sanctuary Hills. If you wanna follow me back, maybe we can work something out?" Nate asked.

"I believe you," Pete told him, "Excuse me friend here. Like I said, these two have been through quite a lot and so have I. They're worried, cautious, not very trusting on strangers they met on the road. Especially one's claimin' to be - heh, old pre-war relics that ain't ghoulified. But I'd be more than happy to travel with these two to your camp. If it's near someplace we can settle, even happier. This 'Sanctuary Hills' a good site for a camp? Maybe a place that can be a little more… Permanent?" Pete asked him.

"Yeah, I'd say so. Lots of buildings, and pretty isolated. But, there's a lot of debris and a lot of cleaning up that needs to be done." Nate cocked his head to the side, looking confused, "I'm sorry but… You said something I don't get. You said 'old pre-war relics that aren't ghoulified'? What do you mean?"

"Ghouls. Disgusting corpses walking and talking like they're human, but they're not." James was quick to answer this one, "And the ones that can't talk, well they just wanna kill you."

"Easy up, James. He ain't a fan of ghoul folk. Basically, after the bombs fell, some survivors were so heavily exposed to radiation, they're skin started peelin' off. Some people kept their humanity, but looked more like a walking dead man. Others, lost their minds too. Became feral, like wild animals. They attack and kill anything in sight, except each other. The reason I said pre-war relics that ain't ghoulified, is because for some reason, ghouls live forever. They're immortal. Which means, if you go and run into a ghoul, a sane one, more than likely, he could've been your next door neighbor." As Pete explained what ghouls were, Nate found it a bit difficult to wrap his head around the idea of it. How many were there exactly? And were they hated by everyone else as much as James hated them?

"Well, if I meet a ghoul, guess we'll have something to talk about." Nate chuckled.

Pete laughed a bit as well, "So, friend. Why don't you have a share of our food and then show us this Sanctuary you speak of?"

"Sounds like a plan." Nate smiled, glad to have run into fairly friendly people in the wasteland. First meetings with other survivors could've gone much worse. James was upset, and angry. Probably angry at the things that have happened, though Nate wasn't quite sure what. Holly hadn't spoken a single word, but at least Pete seemed to keep the two from losing their minds. Clearly, he was the voice of reason, the calmer, cooler one in these situations. Without him, Nate probably would've received an even less friendlier welcome.

The sun began setting by the time Nate got back to the Red Rocket Station. Fleur immediately greeted him outside, seeing the three others behind him, "Monsieur, you've returned! With… Guests. If I had food, I'd prepare you all dinner and tea! My apologies!"

"Two days in the Commonwealth and you've already managed yourself your own personal robot servant?" James questioned him once more, "Your story isn't making too much sense now."

"Give it a rest, James. If he wanted to kill and rob us, he probably would've done it already." Pete looked to Nate.

"Actually, Fleur here is my Nanny Bot from before the war. She stayed in my house in Sanctuary, waiting for the last 200 years. I managed to fix her up after finding her broken down and rusting away. Look, James. I know it's hard to trust me, I'm sure you've been through a lot. But I don't mean you any harm, all right? I can even show you the vault where I came from." Nate told him, though he hoped he wouldn't have to make yet another trip to Vault 111 just to prove a point.

"See, James? Quit your worrying. Now then, you said you needed some food. I was hoping to make you a better offer, but I'll give you two choices," Pete walked up to Nate, handing him some cooked meat wrapped in cloth, "You can take this. Make it last for however long you need to. Keep visitin' us up in Sanctuary to keep tradin'. Or, you help us establish in Sanctuary. Help me plant crops, tend the land there. Grow our own food. You can do the same here, we can be neighbors who help each other. Trade with each other. Make sure the other ain't dead." Pete clasped a hand onto Nate's shoulder, "Minus your lil' robot, you're all alone out here. Could use some friends, people to count on; trust. The Commonwealth's a dangerous place, Mister Davis. So, what do you say?" Pete held his hand out for a shake.

Nate wasn't sure whether to accept or decline. He wanted a good amount of food, and enough supplies to be able to leave Red Rocket Station with enough confidence to only worry about finding Shaun. Finding his son was all that mattered, it was what took priority. Diamond City was half a day's walk, if he could reach it, and seek help. But… Pete was right. He was alone in the wasteland, except for Fleur. While she could purify water, she could not hunt, she could not shoot, and she was only one. If he was going to survive, if he was going to find Shaun, he needed allies. People to trust and count on, as Pete said.

Nate shook his hand, looking Pete right in the eye, "Agreed. Thank you, Pete."

"It's what any decent person in the Commonwealth should do, Mister Davis." Pete let go of the packaged meat in Nate's hand, "Eat tonight. Save the rest. Tomorrow, early in the morning, the three of us will begin cleaning out Sanctuary Hills. At least, a section of it so we can begin buildin' a proper place to live. Hope to see you there. You rest easy, have a good night, both of you." Pete let go of Nate's hand and began to walk away, taking James and Holly along with him.

"Good night, I'll see the three of you tomorrow." Nate waved them off.

"Have a pleasant night!" Fleur turned to Nate, "Shall I come along tomorrow as well?" She asked him, "Or would you prefer I stay and watch the station?"

"No, you'll come along. Station'll be us working together will go a lot faster than four. Besides, the quicker we're done helping them set up a place to stay, the quicker I can get on the road to Diamond City. These are good people, I wanna help them. Plus, we get a good deal out of it. Hopefully it won't be more than a few days." Nate walked into the station, shutting the door behind himself as Fleur stepped through.

"Will we be going to Diamond City together, Monsieur?" Fleur asked, "I'd like to accompany you."

"I don't think so, Fleur. Think about it - It's dangerous out there. You said so yourself, they said so. The last thing I want is to lose you pointlessly. You're essential to my survival, but that's not just it. You're also part of my family, and I'd rather not see you damaged or broken." Nate said this rather casually, getting his bedroll ready as he set the packaged meat down. He noticed Fleur being awfully quiet, "You okay?" He turned to see her - She was simply staring.

"Oh, apologies, monsieur…" Fleur seemed a bit off, almost emotional, "It's just… I know I am essential to your survival. But I didn't expect to hear that other thing you said about me… Am I really a part of your family? I am just a domestic house robot, a Nanny Bot created by General Atomics for simple household chores… And I am a part of your family?"

Nate scoffed, walking up to her, "Of course you are. You helped take care of my baby, you did more for us than we would've felt comfortable asking. You waited for our return for over two hundred years without leaving the house. Programming or not, that sounds like a family member to me." Nate approached - He was unsure how he would hug her, so he simply put an arm around her circular, metallic body, "I appreciate you."

"Oh, Monsieur!" Her little arms went around him, pinching into his skin.

"Ow, okay, Fleur that hur-"

"You have no idea how much that means to me! All this time spent, terrified you'd abandoned me without a second thought all those years ago! For you to come back and tell me something as endearing as that!" She happily exclaimed, "I'm overjoyed to be a part of your family, monsieur! Overjoyed!"

"That's great, Fleur… I think you're cutting me." He said, feeling her little arms and the sharp points digging into his sides.

"Pardon me, monsieur!"

That night, after eating and having a drink of water, Nate went to bed relaxed. With the radio playing, and Fleur in the next room, he felt strangely at peace tonight. He'd met good people, and would be helping them establish a shelter the next day. Once they were done, possibly towards the end of the week, he'd begin his road to Diamond City. Things so far, were looking up. Even if his search had been delayed. But he reminded himself, as he began to fall asleep, that it was all for the sake of finding Shaun.

The following day, Nate had walked over to Sanctuary Hills once more. He hadn't planned on returning so early, but here he was again. Meeting with the survivors he'd found the day earlier, he spent the rest of the day working on establishing Sanctuary Hills as a proper settlement. Debris and trash were being cleaned out, anything broken or considered junk was stripped for parts they could use for building or repairs. It was hard, toiling work. But eventually, they covered up holes in the ceiling of one of the houses, and moved in their bedrolls. A cooking station had been set up, and they established a plumbing system that connected to the river. A water pump had been put into place, with the capabilities of filtering it. Even so, radiation may still be a problem. Fleur promised to, daily, use the water pump to also purify the water after its been filtered. At the end of the day, once things seemed in proper shape, Nate sat around a fire with the rest of the settlers and Fleur.

"So," Nate looked over to Pete, "Why caps?" He asked, "I only recently learned this, but uh… Why did caps replace paper money?"

Pete shrugged, "I weren't around when caps was first implemented as the newest wasteland currency. Might have somethin' to do with the fact they there's about a billion and a half of 'em just lying around, or still attached to bottles. I wasn't educated here in the Commonwealth, and my parents weren't the brightest. You come into this world, learning the way it works as a child, you accept it the way it is and don't act questions. There are bigger concerns to us than why caps are money. But, you ask me, I say go to Diamond City and ask one of them teachers or historians. Bet you they'll answer your question, easy."

Nate nodded, "I'll be sure to do that. Once I help get crops planted tomorrow. I'll be off to Diamond City. Do you know exactly where it is? It's downtown, I know that much for sure."

"I can mark it on your Pip-Boy's map, show you the general area but if you're lookin' in the city, it's as general as it gets. You'll find signs on every street corner pointin' to Diamond City, can't miss 'em." Pete reassured him, but leaned over and took a look at Nate's Pip-Boy, placing a marker down in the general area where Diamond City would be located, "There you are. Careful on your way there, and be even more careful once you arrive into the area. Place is crawling with raiders and super mutants."

"What the hell are super mutants…?" Nate gave Pete a questioning look, were mutants not ghouls? Was there some kind of mega feral ghoul?

"Super Mutants are - well, were human. Whatever happened to them, Institute testing if you ask me, made 'em into big, green monsters with huge muscles and tiny brains. They kill, kidnap and kill anything that isn't like them. They were human, once before. No idea if they breed or what - If there are female super mutants, I doubt you could tell them apart. They all have the same, brutish features and attitudes." As Pete explained, there were even more questions to be asked.

"Wait - Institute testing? What's the Institute?"

"Institute's a bunch of crazy, demented scientists. People say they live underground, performing tests on their fellow man and unleashing synths into the Commonwealth. Hmph… Biggest thing's got the Commonwealth in a tizz is the idea of synths. Y'see, there's been… Evidence. Of people being replaced by Institute synths. Robots made to look and act like people. Nobody trusts anybody anymore."

"You could've been more than a raider. You could've been a synth. Sent to kill us." James still had that look of distrust in his eye. But a scornful glance from Pete made him ease up, "But… You're not. And you're not anything - or anyone bad. I appreciate the help you've given us. Both me and my sister appreciate it." James but an arm around Holly, who'd been quiet for the last couple of days.

"I'm sorry, but-... I'm finding it hard to wrap my head around this." Nate looked up to the three of them, "You're telling me the world's full of raiders, and ghouls - fine, that's easier to believe. But… super mutants, the product of a group of scientists that are also replacing people with robots? Come on…" Nate found it all a little ridiculous, maybe it was Commonwealth superstitions and paranoia.

"Well, soon you'll see it for yourself. Hopefully you won't encounter any of those crazy killer robots on your way to Diamond City." Pete handed him a bottle of purified water, "Here, take as much as you need tomorrow too. It's a long walk from here to there."

"Why?" Holly broke her silence, her voice a raspy whisper as she looked at Nate with questioning eyes. She was a young girl, couldn't have been older than sixteen, if Nate had to guess, "Why are you going to Diamond City…? Why don't you stay here, with Pete and my brother, and just keep helping us? Wouldn't it be safer that way?"

"Hush, sis. It isn't any of our business what he's up to. If he wants to go to Diamond City, it's his decision." James, even acting coolly, had a look of surprise on his face. Nate wondered how long Holly had gone without speaking to James or Pete. She must've been through some kind of trauma.

"But -... He doesn't know. He doesn't know what it's like out there. He's from before the war, used to -... Used to a better life. You don't know, Mister Davis… The - the horrors you'll face out there. My parents… Killed by raiders trying to protect us. My brother, beat. They made him watch while - while they did things to me!" She cried out, clutching herself, "if it wasn't for Pete, we'd be dead!" Her voice was breaking, her eyes wide as she quivered in place, "Why go out there, mister…? Why not just stay here? Where it's safe…?" She had clearly just blown everything out. Everything she'd been storing in. James could only hold her, with a look of sadness and shame on his face. Pete looked to Nate, a somber mask on his face as he sighed.

"I'm sorry." Nate said after a moment, breaking the sad silence around them, "I didn't know any of that happened to you. I'm sorry." His eyes looked up, the three of them looking right back at him, "I have to. When I was frozen, I was woken up once to witness the murder of my wife and the kidnapping of my baby boy, Shaun. He was stolen, yanked away from his dead mother's arms and carried off. Once I was free of the pod, I came out. I have a mission. A mission to find my boy, and kill the man who murdered my wife and stole my son." Nate paused for a moment, "As much as I'd like to stay here, and continue to help. I can't. Finding Shaun is all that matters to me right now. Diamond City is the one place I might be able to find some kind of lead or help. The Commonwealth, this country, it's huge. I can't just blindly walk off in a random direction, hoping to find him. And I can't just give up, either. This is the best I can do right now."

Silence once more… But understanding faces looked back at Nate.

Holly slowly nodded, "Th-then… When you find your son… Come back to us." She said, a hopeful look on her face, "Won't you?"

Nate nodded, "I'll come back. Tonight we rest, but tomorrow there's some more work for us to do."

"That's right. We all need to get some shut-eye before tomorrow. Long day of plantin' ahead." Pete stood up, "Fleur, was it? Why don't you help me clean all of this up?"

"Of course!" Fleur moved to help Pete clean up the fire pit and plates. Nate stepped off to the side, headed back to the next house over, where one of his bedrolls waited.

"Excuse me, Nate?" James was behind him.

Nate turned to face the young man, "Yeah?"

"I just wanted to say… I'm sorry for the way I treated you. You seem like a good man to me."

Nate chuckled, "Don't worry about it. After what you've been through, and the kind of world you live in, I completely get it. Safer to be untrusting of every stranger that comes across you."

"Yeah, you're right about that… Thanks for being so understanding. It's just been really difficult for me and my sis. Ever since our parents were killed and -... And everything else that happened that night, nothing's been the same. This is the first time I've heard her speak in the last couple of months. It's just… It feels good to meet someone kind for a change." James smiled at Nate, reaching his hand out.

Nate reached out, and gave him a firm handshake, "I'll see you in the morning, James."

"Yeah, you too…" James let go after a moment, turning around and walking back to his sister. He lead her inside of the dark house where they'd sleep.

Fleur warned Nate of coming across raiders and other folks who might want to hurt him or steal from him. James, Holly and Pete had both seen horrors in the wasteland that Nate hoped he'd never experience as well. But soon… The further on he ventured out, and more time that passed that he lived here, he knew he'd have his own share of horror stories as well. Even so, he felt rather fortunate to have run into these three. Tomorrow, once crops were planted, he'd leave them. But what he told Holly was true, he'd come back.

But he had some things to take care of first.


End file.
